How to Mix Colors in CS5

A color mixer, found in the Color panel, helps you choose colors. You can use the Eyedropper tool to choose a color or, if you prefer, enter values for each hue or percentage. You can use one of several different color modes in the programs you use, which offers you a lot of flexibility for all your projects.

Follow these steps to choose a color in a specified color mode:

In a program that has a Color panel, choose Window→Color to open the Color panel (if it’s not open already).

The Color panel is available in Illustrator, InDesign, and Photoshop.

Click the Color panel menu to choose a new color mode.

Open this menu by clicking the arrow button in the upper-right corner of the Color panel.

Choose the RGB color mode from the panel menu that opens.

The panel switches to RGB color mode.

In the Color panel, click either the Fill box (solid square) or the Stroke box (hollow square) to choose the color you want to change.

If you click the Fill box, you can modify the color of a fill (the color inside a shape). If you click the Stroke box, you can modify the color of a stroke(the outline of a shape or a line).

Use the sliders in the Color panel to change the color values.

You can also change the percentage values to the right of each slider.

After you choose a color you’re happy with, return to your document and create a new shape that uses the color.

Hold down the Shift key when adjusting any one-color slider and the other color sliders adjust proportionally to provide you with various tints from your original.